April 29, 2019, 4:20 pm
Last week, the New Jersey attorney general’s office announced the arrest of sixteen individuals as part of “Operation Home Alone”. These individuals, which included a police officer, minister a teacher and other professionals were allegedly speaking with people they believed to be minors via social media sites, who turned out to be police posing as minors.
According to the news reports, “The social media platforms involved in Operation Home Alone include Kik, Skout, Grindr, Tinder, MeetMe, and Adam4Adam.”
When reviewing the terms of service for all of the social media sites involved in Operation Home Alone, 5 out of 6 platforms utilized in the sting supposedly prohibit people under the age of 18 from using it’s site (Kik is the exception).
So if most of these sites expressly exclude children, how can they be considered portals for child predators and if, in fact, children are being solicited on these sites (as opposed to officers pretending to be children), what responsibility do the social media sites have to prevent it?
Other perceived dangers to children are regulated. As of June 22, 2010, the FDA made it a federal violation to sell tobacco products to a minor. Business owners and employees can be convicted of a felony for serving alcohol to minors. The EPA has laws to protect children from environmental hazards. A teacher was even convicted for showing an R rated movie to her class, under an Ohio law that states, “No person, with knowledge of its character or content, shall recklessly … disseminate, provide, exhibit, rent, or present to a juvenile, a group of juveniles … any material or performance that is obscene or harmful to juveniles.”
Since the sale of “adult-oriented” products such as gaming and wine has become more prevalent online, services have existed that screen website users for age and identity. For example, electronicverificationsystems.com claims, “Using premium data source providers, our system verifies consumer-provided name, address, and date of birth along with additional optional data points including phone number, e-mail address, and Social Security Number. Clients that want more thorough confirmation of age can verify the identity of the consumer through phone authentication via SMS or programmatic voice, or through dynamic Knowledge-Based Authentication (KBA).”
So if these social media sites are actually so dangerous to children and technology exists to prevent children from accessing them, shouldn’t the companies behind them bear some responsibility in ensuring their terms and conditions are adhered to and children are denied access?
Also, as a side benefit, users of these sites will have the comfort of knowing they are engaging with an actual adult and not becoming the victim of a bait and switch “sex sting”.
The post What role should social media sites play in preventing child exploitation? appeared first on Florida Action Committee.
Go to Source
Author: Florida Action Committee
The opinions expressed within posts and comments are solely those of each author, and are not necessarily those of Women Against Registry.
Women Against Registry Family Foundation.
We will receive .5% of your total purchase as a donation from amazon.
If you want to shop at amazon, please shop at
smile.amazon.com/ch/47-4076038
Our organizations, Women Against Registry and WAR Family Foundation, do not support or condone illegal sexual activity based on state and federal laws, to include child or adult sex trafficking. We are not and have never been affiliated with any organizations that promote, support or condone sex between adults and minors.
